, here they are brokering between hamas and israel. it's a new role for this government but it also shows that they're playing a very significant place witin the region right now. >brown:hado you think about that? and also this question of hamas gaining a kind of legitimacy through all of this through egyptians, other foreign ministers coming to gaza and leaving abbas out of it. >> he's sort of out in the cold. i agree with ambassador ross. the egyptians have been playing a very prominent role, but i think we can't ignore the fact that hamas has been greatly em imoald ened even since the attacks began, even since the assassination of their top military commander, their popularity, their stock, if you wil in the region h skyrocketed while their rivals in the west bank have plummeted smed even we're at a situation now where the exact opposite of the intended outcome is what we have. the policy has been for the last five years to support and build up the leadership in the west bank. >> brown: the u.s. policy. the u.s. policy, right. and t